


In Your Skin

by Ardania22



Category: RWBY
Genre: Bodyswap, F/F, Oranges
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-22
Updated: 2019-08-22
Packaged: 2020-09-24 02:41:39
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 6,060
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20351038
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ardania22/pseuds/Ardania22
Summary: One morning in Atlas, Yang and Ruby wake up to realize they've somehow ended up in each other's body. And in the process of figuring out what's going on, they learn more about each other than they were expecting.





	In Your Skin

**Author's Note:**

> Well, I actually went and did it. This is my first ever fanfiction, and I have no idea if I'll ever write any more, but it was a fun experiment regardless. Let me know what you think in the comments below! Feedback and criticism is appreciated.
> 
> Some minor cursing, and cItrus level is... oranges, I believe? Nothing happens, but there is the implication of things that have happened, if that makes sense. Thanks, and enjoy!

Yang was awoken by a sunbeam streaming right into her eye. Her first thought was, _That’s odd, I thought I closed the blinds._ Her second thought was, _God, somebody turn the freaking sun off._

Groaning, she heaved herself out of bed. It had been some time since team RWBY had arrived in Atlas, and Ironwood was still dragging his feat on aiding the defense of the relic. You’d figure even someone as tight-assed as him would loosen up a bit with the fate of the world on the line, but apparently that was too much to ask for. At the very least, it left them with plenty of time to explore the city, but even sightseeing wore out its welcome quickly when the specter of anti-Faunus discrimination was around every corner. Yang bit her lip at the memory of one particularly condescending shopkeeper who would constantly refer to Blake as “your pet”. Screw keeping up appearances, the next time someone so much as sneered in the wrong direction of Blake’s cat ears, Yang was gonna put a hole in their house. Preferably a big one that would require lots of costly repairs to fix.

Yang shook her head. _Keep it together._ She must still be half-asleep if her emotions were already getting the best of her. And it’s not like she could punch the morning sun into submission, satisfying as it might be to imagine. Still, it was odd. She’d been having trouble with the sunrise waking her up too early ever since they got to Atlas, and she’d taken to closing the blinds at night to keep the light out in the morning. Did she just forget last night? Possibly, but she was pretty sure she closed them. Maybe Blake had snuck in and opened them for some reason? Unlikely; Faunus could see easily in the dark, after all. Besides, the thought of Blake being in her room without her knowing was…

_On second thought, let’s not pursue that train of thought._

Wincing, Yang stretched to wake her muscles up. It felt good, better than usual. It was almost like the knots in her joints had grown smaller and less painful overnight, though why that might be was anyone’s guess. Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she groggily stumbled over to her dresser… and promptly banged her big toe on its leg.

“Ow!”

She froze, suddenly too surprised to be hurt anymore. What just happened? The voice that had cried out in pain certainly came from her mouth, but it sure as hell wasn’t hers. It was too high-pitched, too nasally, too…

Oh no.

Spinning around, all traces of sleep gone, Yang rushed over to the mirror. She blinked once, twice, three times. She pinched her arm, squealing again in the same unfamiliar, yet familiar voice. She looked down at herself, just to make absolutely sure. No, she was definitely awake. This was really happening.

The face staring back at her from the mirror was her sister Ruby.

***

The first difference Ruby noticed was the weight.

Not that she was calling Yang fat; the mere implication was enough to make her wince in expectation of a friendly, if strong, punch on the arm. Still, it was remarkable how much difference a few pounds of muscle could make. Ruby was used to feeling like a sparrow on her toes, like she could bounce and leap and feel the wind whistling under her. Yang was different. Yang was solid, stocky, her center of gravity firmly keeping her planted on the ground. It was like trading out a wingsuit glider for battle armor, to the point where Ruby almost overbalanced and face-planted right from the get-go. It was a good thing she stopped herself; she could only imagine Yang’s face if she saw her own body staring at her with a bloody nose.

“How does she move like this?” Ruby wondered aloud, still not used to the sound of her voice being so low-pitched. Yang’s face stared back at her from the mirror, reflecting her own quizzical expression. She flexed her arm, marveling at the tension she felt traveling down her muscle. How long did it take her to build these up? It was like the full potential energy of Crescent Rose was stored inside her fist, just waiting for the trigger to be released. No wonder she could knock the bad guys senseless so easily. _God, Sis really is the coolest._

She wasn’t sure why she wasn’t more confused. She did just wake up in her sister’s body, after all, with no explanation for how or why she got there. For all she knew, this was the work of some enemy’s semblance. Maybe even Emerald’s hallucinations. But for whatever reason, she felt surprisingly calm. Excited, even. After so much stasis in Atlas, repeatedly failing to drag Ironwood away from his stubbornness, something interesting was finally happening. That had to be some sort of good omen, right?

***

“This has to be a bad omen,” Yang muttered.

She was pacing around the room, almost tripping every once in a while thanks to Ruby’s lighter frame (seriously, how was her sister able to kick so much ass with so little muscle?), her mind whirling at a million miles an hour. Too many thoughts were crowding her head for space. Was this a trick? An attack? A practical joke? What kind of semblance was able to switch bodies? Or was it a semblance at all? There was no telling what kind of insane powers the remaining maidens and relics might have. Was that it? Did someone steal the Atlas relic and use its powers against them? No, probably not; if this was some sort of attack, they would have gone a lot farther than mind games.

_Stop. Breathe._

She breathed. Slowly. Many times. Gradually, the panic started to fade. _Okay. That’s more like it. See, I’m fine. Everything’s fine. We’ve been through weirder than this._

_Not by much,_ another thought nagged at her.

_Shut up,_ she shot back.

Yang stopped pacing and ran her hands through her hair. Already, the absence of her long locks was weirding her out more than she’d like to admit. Not to mention suddenly having both hands again. A slight tremor echoed through her at the thought, but she shut it down. _Don’t worry about it._ If she could face Adam Taurus again after what he did to her, this might as well be a cakewalk.

So.

Yang glanced around the room. Upon closer inspection, this was definitely Ruby’s room, hence why the blinds weren’t closed, though how her sister was able to sleep comfortably with the sun streaming into her eyes like that was beyond her. Her appearance hadn’t changed to look like Ruby; they had definitely swapped bodies. Which meant that right now, Ruby was probably waking up in her body and was just as confused as she was. Okay. There was a place to start. Once she got together with her sister, they could probably figure their way out of this.

Ruby. God, was Ruby okay? Was she able to process what was going on, or was she completely freaking out? A pang of anxiety shot through Yang. There was no time to waste; she needed to find her sister as soon as possible. _Please, let her be okay._

There was a knock on the door. “Ruby? You up yet?”

Yang swore under her breath. Weiss always had the worst possible timing. _What now?_ Should she tell her what’s going on? Or should she try and act like Ruby?

“Ruby?”

“Sorry, Weiss!” Yang called out in Ruby’s voice. “Just need a sec!” Act like Ruby it was, then; there was no need to worry everyone else if it was nothing to worry about. The sooner and cleaner she could get back in her own body, the better. Then she could tell everyone afterwards, once the need for panic was over. Yang could handle this on her own. Probably.

A sigh came from the other side of the door. “I swear, for someone who moves so fast, you can be remarkably lazy, you know that?”

“I know!” _Watch it, Weiss, that’s my sister you’re talking about._ “Sorry, almost there!” In a flash, Yang scrambled out of her PJs and put on Ruby’s regular outfit. It had been a long time since she’d worn a dress; if not for the oddity of the situation, it would almost be fun. “Okay, ready!”

The door opened, and in came Weiss, perfectly polished as always. “At last! Good news, it looks like Ironwood might be budging. Winter just got a telegram from his office, and it says he wants to meet us all this afternoon!”

Yang grinned. “Alright!” Finally, something was going their way! Then her smile fell. “This… afternoon?”

Weiss raised an eyebrow. “Yes?”

“Wow.” Yang forced herself to smile again. “So soon, huh? And I thought I moved fast.” Already, her mind was starting to race; there was no way she could fool Ironwood for a full-length meeting. She needed to find Ruby and fix this _now._

“Yes, I suppose you do share certain proclivities.” Weiss idled around the room. A smile crept across her face. “I wish I knew what Winter said to him. You should hear her hold negotiations sometime, she could convince a Beowulf to file his teeth if she put her mind to it.”

“I wouldn’t put it past her.” Yang glanced at the doorway; the path was clear. “Anyway, I figure I better, um, let my sister know the good news, so I’ll just-“

_Smack!_ Yang had been so busy trying to keep Weiss in her sights that she ended up tripping over her own two feet. She tumbled to the ground and yelped in pain as she felt her arm twist. “Ow! Son of a-“

She froze. No cursing. Ruby didn’t curse. Or did she? Not around her, she didn’t. No, there’s no way she would curse. She cast a nervous glance at Weiss; had she noticed?

“Oh my gosh, are you alright?”

Apparently not; the ice queen had slid down right next to her so fast Yang almost thought she teleported. She was on her knees, anxiously dabbing her fingers across Yang’s injured arm. The look of concern on her face was almost comical. Weiss, of all people, worrying so much over an arm sprain?

“I’m fine, I’m fine.” Yang propped herself up onto her knees. “See, no damage!” _Please, let that be a thing she says._

Weiss looked over her one last time, then let out a sigh of relief. “Thank goodness.” Yang could see her visibly relax. “This would be a bad time for fate to mess with us.”

“No joke.”

Weiss glanced at her. The look of relief in her eyes was replaced with something more quizzical. Yang froze; was she busted? “W-what’s up?” she stammered out.

“You seem… off.”

“Do I?” _Don’t start sweating. Don’t start sweating._ “Dunno why. Still the same old Ruby! See?” Yang put on her goofiest smile and made a peace sign. The rational part of her brain was screaming at her to just shut up already, but at this point, the nerves had taken over.

Thankfully, it seemed to work; the puzzled look in Weiss’ eyes vanished. “You must still be tired,” she said. “I swear, you need to start getting to bed at a reasonable hour. What kind of huntress can’t even manage nine in the morning?”

“Sorry,” Yang mumbled.

“No worries. We all have off days, right?”

And then, Weiss did something Yang never could have predicted; she leaned over and gave her a swift peck on the cheek. “Get some rest. We’ll need you fresh for the afternoon.”

Yang was completely frozen. Had Weiss just said something? Was time still moving, or had it stalled in place? Was her brain still working, or had it been reduced to jello by now? “R-r-right,” she managed to get out. Just a word. At least, she thought it was a word; maybe it no longer was. Who could say? Certainly not her.

Weiss gave her a long, concerned look, then smiled again. “You are out of it. Go on, back to bed.”

“S-sure thing.”

It felt like an eternity as Weiss stood up. There was no way time was still moving properly. And yet, there she was, casting one last warm glance back at Yang as she left the room and closed the door behind her.

Silence. Stillness. Yang was locked in the position she was in when Weiss had kissed her. It was like every nerve in her body had short-circuited and shut her exoskeleton down, so now she was trapped inside a prison of flesh and bone and unable to wriggle her limbs out of it. Had that just happened? Did that event actually just occur? Maybe the hallucinations were just getting worse? No, that was definitely a real lingering sensation she felt on her cheek. That was real. All logical signs pointed to the conclusion that what she thought had just occurred had, indeed, just occurred. Yes, that was the only explanation. Now if only she could get her brain to believe it.

And then, a smile started spreading across her face. Slowly at first, then broad and wide, wider than she’d smiled pretty much ever. Now it all made sense. The looks she’d seen crossing between Ruby and Weiss lately, the moments when they’d both sneak off when they thought she wasn’t paying attention… it was such an obvious, simple explanation that it was remarkable she never even considered it before. In that moment, Yang didn’t think she’d ever been prouder of her little sister. _Ruby, you superstar._

Finally unfrozen, she got to her feet and began pacing, barely able to contain her excitement. Oh, this was _glorious._ Ruby and Weiss, a couple! Already she could feel her big sister instincts start taking over; the desire to find Ruby and tease her to the brink of death was almost unbearable. How long had this been going on? Had it started after they got to Atlas, or were they together even before that? Who had made the first move? Oh, she hoped it was Ruby; she would never let her hear the end of it. How close had they even become? Probably not much, but then again, a cheek kiss could mean a lot of things. Inwardly, she sent a silent thanks to whatever force switched their bodies around that Weiss hadn’t tried to go any further. Otherwise, things would’ve gotten awkward in ways neither of them would likely recover from. After all-

She froze. Suddenly, the cold shell of dread was clamping down over her again. That’s right. Ruby was still in her body. And that meant there was a possibility…

She didn’t even finish the thought before she thrust the door open and started sprinting down the hallway to her room, where she prayed her worst fears weren’t coming true.

***

“Hiiiiii-YAH!”

The force of the punch nearly made Ruby overbalance, but she managed to keep her footing. She swung her fist once more, twice more through the air. Each blow sent a jolt of momentum through her, like Yang’s body was propelling itself forward from the inertia. She spun around and jabbed behind her with a cry of determination. “Yeah, take that, monsters! Big Sis Yang coming through!” She felt the air ripple outward from the force of her blow; the vase on the bedside table cracked from the pressure.

She giggled; her sister’s muscles really were the coolest thing in the world. Even if she was only punching empty air, she felt like she could take on an army of Grimm with her bare hands. “Alright, Cinder,” she growled in a voice she hoped Yang would be proud of, “this is for messing with my family!” She jumped as high as she could, spun in mid-air, and hurtled back to Earth, swinging Ember Celica as hard as she could.

KRACKOOM!

The stone flooring cracked from the blow; splinters of rock and gravel went everywhere. Ruby landed on one knee, stunned by what she had just done. “Wow,” she murmured. “Yang, you seriously- aacktpphph! Dust! Too dusty!” She dissolved in a coughing fit as the dust cloud raised by her attack filtered into her nostrils. The awe she felt was gone in an instant. _God, that was dumb. That was so dumb._

Suddenly, she heard the sound of footsteps racing towards the door. Oh no. Ruby got to her feet and tried desperately to wave the dust away, but it was no use. _Oh man, Yang’s gonna kill me!_

The door burst open. “Yang, I heard a crash, are you- woah, what happened here?” Blake skidded to a stop, the panic on her face quickly replaced by confusion.

Ruby sent a silent prayer up to the sky; _Thank you for keeping Yang away._ “Hi, Blake!” she said, putting her best act on. “I was just, uh, testing my weapon out, and I think I miiiight’ve gotten just a little carried away. Maybe.”

“You- oh.” Blake furrowed her brow. “Why weren’t you practicing in the courtyard like usual?”

_Nuts._

“Ah, well, you know!” Ruby instinctively ran her hands through her hair, half-hoping she’d find some sort of excuse hiding in Yang’s tangled mane. “You practice in one place too long, it gets boring. Variety is the spice of life and all that!”

“But your room?” Blake glanced at the cracked vase. “Unless the flowers started mouthing off to you…”

“Well- I- I figured it was time for some renovation!”

“Renovation?”

“Yeah! Because, you know, we’ve been in Atlas so long, and we’ve had the same rooms for so long and the same rooms start getting reeeeally boring after a while, so I figured, you know, hey, might as well kill two birds with one stone!” _Shut up shut up you’re so bad at this just shut up_

Blake gave Ruby a curious look. “Are… you feeling okay?”

_Be cool. Be cool._

“Oh yeah, super! Yang-tastic!” Almost as if compelled, Ruby punctuated her poor excuse for a pun with finger guns.

_Nooooooooo!_

For five agonizing seconds, the scene was still. Blake, looking incredulously at Ruby in Yang’s body. Ruby, dopey smile painted on and finger guns ablaze. The dust finally settling in a lazy blanket over the wreckage Ruby created.

Then, mercifully, Blake snorted. She snorted again. She dissolved into giggling that slowly escalated until it was full-blown laughter. She swayed in the doorframe, leaning against it for support. “You… are… ridiculous!” she gasped out between laughs.

In spite of herself, Ruby felt herself chuckling too. “Yeah, I guess so.” Thank god, she actually pulled it off. _I must be more like Sis than I thought!_

Blake pushed herself upright and wiped her eyes with the palm of her hand. “Okay, okay.” She stifled the last of her laughs. “Well, if we’re renovating, I suppose I’ll lend a hand.” She walked into the room, closing the door behind her. “Scoot over, Sunshine.”

“Uh, sure! Right.”

Ruby stepped to the side, and Blake knelt down into the mess she’d made. Brushing her hair behind an ear, she started sifting through the rubble and sorting it into piles based on size. One pile for the larger chunks, one for the medium-sized pebbles, one for the outright dust. It was incredibly well-organized; Blake barely had to look at a smashed piece of rock for a second before tossing it in the pile that best suited it. Her cat ears flicked with obvious enjoyment every few seconds. Ruby was impressed; it took a very special kind of person to have this much fun doing chores. If it weren’t for the fact he was in Yang’s body, she would’ve got down on one knee on the spot and begged Blake to teach her how to be so neat.

Then something occurred to her, a thought that had taken a few seconds to really process, but now stood her up short. Just now, when Blake had gone down to organize the rubble, what had she said to Yang? “Scoot over, Sunshine.” Sunshine. That was a pet name. She had called her sister a pet name. But not one Ruby had ever seen anyone else call her ever. Not Tai, not Qrow, certainly not herself.

That was _Blake’s_ pet name for Yang. Hers, personally, and no one else’s.

Ruby felt her cheeks blush redder than they’d ever blushed before. Was it possible? Were Blake and her sister actually-

“Hey, you gonna help out? This was your idea, right?”

Blake’s voice snapped Ruby out of her reverie. “Right, right! Sorry, brain fart.” She hurriedly dropped to her knees and started picking through the rubble. But the red in her cheeks refused to fade.

_Calm down,_ she told herself, making sure to keep her face turned away from Blake. It’s not like the possibility came out of nowhere. Ruby had suspected Yang’s feelings ever since they escaped Argus. It wasn’t unthinkable to imagine they might have gotten together without her realizing. Heck, she even kind of expected it. And besides, what about her and Weiss? If they could start going out after finally realizing the obvious fact that they were both nuts for each other, the same could easily be true for Yang and Blake. But still, that _this_ was the way she found out about it-

_Oh no._ Another thought had occurred to her. If she was in Yang’s body, then Yang must be in hers, right? So, what if Weiss unknowingly let something slip about them just as Blake had about her and Yang? Her blush got, if anything, even worse. _Oh man, I’ve gotta find Sis. This is getting really out of hand._

“Are you sure you’re okay?”

“Fine!” Ruby yelped in surprise. “Just, you know, cleaning!” She realized she had stopped moving her hands in the process of thinking; groaning inwardly, she rushed back into motion. A puff of dust was knocked up, and she coughed again.

Blake grabbed her hand. “Hey.”

Ruby froze. Nervously, she cast a glance in Blake’s direction. Her eyes were full of worry, almost overwhelmingly palpable. She snapped her eyes away in a flash, feeling her cheeks grow, if anything, even redder. Dimly, she realized Blake had grabbed Yang’s robotic hand; it felt like such a natural extension of her body, she hadn’t even noticed a difference until now. But the way Blake was holding it, the look in her eyes… there was no denying it now.

_I’m so sorry, Yang, I wasn’t trying to invade your privacy!_

“I-I’m okay,” Ruby managed to stammer out. “Just, you know, thinking about stuff.”

“Bad stuff?”

“I guess.” _Just answer. Any answer. You’ll be fine._

Blake’s grip grew stronger. “Anything you want to talk about?”

Ruby exhaled. The panic was starting to leave her. Why was she scared? Blake wasn’t an enemy, she wasn’t going to freak out if she found out what was really going on. “I’ll be alright,” she said. “Nothing I can’t handle!” She managed to look at Blake again and flashed a smile. If her sister was really going out with Blake, then all she needed to do was make sure she didn’t screw anything up until they found a way to switch back. Easy.

Blake’s look of concern lasted another few seconds before finally dissolving into a warm smile. “Okay, Sunshine. I trust you.”

“Aw, I trust you too.” _Nope. Shut up. Still bad at this._

Blake snorted again. “Yeah. Thank you.”

Then, to Ruby’s horror, Blake leaned in and embraced her tightly. “You know,” she whispered into her ear, “if you need to loosen up and relax for a bit, my room’s open.”

In an instant, Ruby was frozen again. _Oh no. Oh no oh no oh no oh no._ She’d read enough of Blake’s dirty novels (she’d sneak them under her bedcovers at Beacon when her team wasn’t looking) to know what _that_ meant._ That’s how close you’ve gotten with Yang? Wow, Sis, can you get any cooler- NO NO SHUT UP BRAIN NOT THE TIME WE’VE GOT A CRISIS HERE RED ALERT_

“Ahhhgm.” Ruby wasn’t sure exactly what kind of noise she had just made, but at least it bought a little time for her to yank her focus back. “I, uh… I think-“

Suddenly, there was a banging at the door. “HEY SIS, YOU IN THERE?”

Ruby sent another silent prayer up to the sky; it was her own voice coming through the door. _Thank you, Yang!_ “I, yeah! What’s up, Ruby? Just doing a little, uh, renovation!” She cast a panicked glance at Blake; the girl let her go and retreated back to her own space, huffing slightly. _I’m so sorry, I promise Yang will make it up to you!_

“Ruby? What do you-“ There was a muffled “eep!”, as if Yang had stifled herself mid-sentence upon realizing why her sister might be calling her the wrong name. “Heeeeeeeey, Yang! We, uh, got some good news about Ironwood! Why don’t you come with me and I can tell you all about it?”

“Okay, sure thing!” She looked back at Blake. “I’m so sorry, Blake. I think she really needs me.”

And then, she froze yet again, because Blake had leaned over and kissed her on the cheek. “Go on, Yang. I’ll finish up here.”

“T-thank you.” _Get it together, come on!_ “Sorry. Thanks. Okay, bye!”

Ruby was on her feet and out the door in an instant. Breathing a sigh of relief, she wiped the sweat off her brow and looked around. Lo and behold, there was her own body nervously folding and unfolding her arms by the door, wearing an unmistakably Yang expression. Upon seeing her come out, she instantly stood at attention and pressed a finger to her lips before beckoning her sister to follow her down the corridor. Ruby obliged, keeping her mouth shut until the two of them were back in the comfort of her own room.

***

Once Yang was certain the door was closed and no one was listening, she breathed a long, weary sigh and turned back to face Ruby. “Thank god. You okay, Rubes?”

“Yeah, I’m okay.” Ruby slumped down onto her bed, all energy gone. “I’m so sorry, Yang.”

“Sorry? For what?”

Ruby blushed. “I don’t know, just… I don’t know.”

Yang sat down beside Ruby. “You look beat.”

Ruby nodded glumly. “Being you is so hard.”

Yang raised an eyebrow. “How so?”

Ruby shook her head. Now that she no longer had to keep the act up, the pressure was finally getting to her. What was she thinking? There was no way she could pretend to be her sister. She wasn’t as cool, she wasn’t as confident, she wasn’t as strong. How she’d managed to fool Blake as long as she did, she had no idea. And then, she couldn’t get out of that situation without hurting Blake’s feelings- her _sister’s girlfriend’s_ feelings. She felt the tears start to well up, but she forced them back down. It would be stupid to cry now.

There was a brief silence. Then, Yang reached over and grasped Ruby’s mechanical hand- hers, really, but whatever. “You’re really cool, you know that?”

Ruby blinked. “What?”

“You’re really cool. Like, I can’t do half of the things in my body that I could do in yours. You’re like a bird in flight with every step. Not like me, I’m like a big, dumb monster blundering through the city and smashing buildings whenever I knock into them.”

“Don’t say that!” Ruby was on her feet in an instant. “You’re super cool too, you know! I never thought anyone could punch as hard as you do! And these muscles!” She flexed to make a point. “You could lift a Beowolf over your head with these?”

Yang cracked a smile. “You think so?”

“Of course!”

“But I bet you could outrun a Nevermore, right?”

Ruby paused. “Well, I don’t think I’ve ever tried, but…”

“You could.” Yang leaded back and stretched. “Seriously, the stuff you can do that I can’t? I think it’s pretty amazing.”

“Right back at you.”

Ruby smiled; her bad mood was gone. Part of her suspected that Yang hadn’t been feeling insecure about herself at all; she had just put on that act for Ruby’s sake. But she didn’t mind. Her sister really was the coolest.

And as if to drive that point home, the very next thing Yang did was push herself back up onto her feet and say, “Alright, more importantly, I’ve got the way to get us back to normal. What say we do that before things get even crazier- oof!”

Before she could finish, Ruby had wrapped her sister in a massive bear hug and squeezed her tightly. “God, you’re the coolest!”

Yang choked. “Easy… can’t breathe…”

“Sorry, sorry!” Ruby let go. “I keep forgetting how strong this body is!”

“Yeah, no joke.” Yang pounded on her chest to get the air flowing again. “Geez, you’re not kidding, I pack a _wallop._”

“Sorry,” Ruby said again, less sheepish this time. That was Yang, alright; always making things better just by being there. “So, you found a fix?”

“I did!” Yang reached into the pocket of her dress and pulled out a glowing green crystal. “I ran into Oscar on the way to you. Turns out, he and Ozpin have been experimenting with the whole body-jumping magic, and they’re figuring out a way to make two people switch bodies. Of course, they still need to work out all the bugs. What good is body-swapping magic if you can’t control what bodies it swaps?”

Ruby grinned. “Remind me to tease him endlessly later.” So there was never anything serious going on; just Oscar working to make things even more cool. Yeah, Atlas was _definitely_ picking up.

Yang winked and held out the crystal. “This thing is the implement for the spell. Basically, we both need to touch it at the same time, and we’ll switch back.”

“Simple as that?”

“Simple as that. Ready?”

“You bet I am.”

Ruby reached out and touched the crystal. It only took a second for the world to explode out from inside her.

***

Yang blinked and opened her eyes. “Ow,” she groaned. She wasn’t quite sure what had happened when Ruby touched the crystal; all she knew for sure is that for a split-second, it felt like she was being squeezed through the world’s tightest tunnel, mashed into a soupy pulp before somehow being strung back together on the other side. Thankfully, the nausea was already fading, through the tingling in her arms and legs was lingering a little longer. She looked down at the floor to steady herself, just in time to see the crystal dissolve in her hand and fade away like dust on the wind.

_Her_ hand. Not Ruby’s. She was back in her own body. A quick glance up confirmed that Ruby was back in hers as well, swaying from the impact of the transfer and muttering gibberish under her breath. She flexed her arm, first her real one, then her artificial one. Good. Everything in its proper place. She breathed a sigh of relief. _Thank god._

“Woah,” Ruby mumbled. “World… spinning… need sugar…”

She slipped, but Yang caught her before she could hit the ground. “Easy there, Rubes. Can’t have you face-planting now.”

“Nossir.” Ruby flopped back onto her bed. “M’fine. I’m me. I’m always me.” She lackadaisically waved her arms above her head. “Lookit, sis. I’m moving my arms. Me. My body. Moving. Move move move.”

In spite of herself, Yang stifled a chuckle. “Yeah, they _definitely_ need to work the bugs out.” Mentally, she made a note to tell Oscar to fix the jet lag; he was gonna need all the help he could get sorting this complicated magic out. “You good, sis?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m good.” Ruby took a deep breath, stretching all her limbs out about as far as they could go. “MmmMMMMMMMMMmmmm.” She relaxed, letting her arms and legs flump back down. “Aaaah, agility. I missed you.”

“You look like you need to sleep in.”

“Agreed.” Ruby lay face-down.

Yang smiled. It really was remarkable; her sister had gone through the same unnerving experience as she had, and yet here she was, already back to her normal self. _You say you admire my strength,_ she thought. _Do you know how much I admire yours?_ She wondered if she should say that out loud, but decided against it. Some things didn’t need to be said.

“Well, sleep up,” she finally said. “It sounds like Ironwood’s starting to cave, so get rested to meet him this afternoon, kay?”

“This afternoon?” Ruby rolled over, showing her face again. “Score!”

“Yeah, Weiss came by and told me this morning. Not sure how I beat her to your room, but-“

She paused. “Ruby?”

Her sister had stiffened and was looking askance. “You… saw Weiss?” she mumbled.

Suddenly, Yang remembered the cheek kiss. “Uh, yeah. I did.”

“Did…” Ruby’s voice was smaller than she’d heard it in a long time. “Did she… say anything weird when she thought you were me?”

Yang wet her lips. She thought about Blake, and the panic that made her rush to find Ruby so quickly. Was Blake in her room when she arrived? She must have been; why else would Ruby have pretended to be her when she showed up? Did she let slip just as Weiss had? Yes, almost certainly; Blake was never one to hide her affections when the two of them were alone. And of course, that would make Ruby worry about Weiss doing the same. Somehow, they both independently arrived at the conclusion that they’d be better off keeping their relationships secret.

And yet, Yang couldn’t help but feel relieved that the secrets were finally out. She imagined that she’d be unfathomably embarrassed should Ruby discover what was going on between her and Blake, like it was some shameful secret to be kept from the light of day. But instead, she was happy. Happy that she no longer had to keep quiet what didn’t deserve to be kept quiet. She loved Blake; she loved this incredible, magical girl who somehow clawed her way into Yang’s life and made every sun shine a little bit brighter. And if Ruby loved Weiss even half as much as that, she knew her sister was in equally good hands.

So in response, Yang smiled, brushed her hair behind her ear, and said, “Only that my sister is the smoothest operator in Remnant.”

“Yang!”

Yang raised her arms to deflect the pillow that came hurtling towards her head. “Easy there, you need that to sleep on.”

Ruby glared at her, pouting majestically with a face burning red. “Meanie.”

“I know, I know, I’m sorry.” Yang tossed the pillow back to her. “I’m happy for you. Really.”

Ruby’s pout vanished. “Really?”

“Really.”

Ruby glanced away and fidgeted awkwardly. “Then, I guess I should say… Blake thinks you broke the floor in your room to do renovations, and she cleaned it all up for you, so you owe her. Like, owe her, owe her.”

Now it was Yang’s turn to blush. “Don’t tell me-“

“Nothing happened!” Ruby yelped. “Nothing! Don’t worry! Geez!” She spun around in bed and buried her face in the pillow.

Yang pressed her palm to her forehead, hoping the pressure would alleviate the burn in her cheeks. Thank _god_ she got there when she did. “Okay,” she said. “I will… keep that in mind.” She considered asking Ruby what exactly she meant by renovations, but on second thought, she kept her mouth shut. Her sister deserved as much sleep as she could handle. “Night, Rubes.”

“Even though it’s morning?” Ruby’s voice was muffled by the pillow, but Yang could tell how exhausted she was.

“Yes. Good night.”

“Kay. Love you.”

“Love you too, silly.”

Ruby didn’t answer. From the sound of her breathing, Yang guessed she was already on her way to dreamland. “Sleep tight,” she whispered. Turning, she left her sister’s room, closed the door behind her, and started creeping down the hallway in the direction of Blake’s room. Something told her she had a _lot_ to make up for.

**Author's Note:**

> Wow, so that’s my first fanfic. Again, it’s unlikely I’ll be doing much more of this, but feedback and comments are still appreciated if you feel so inclined! Thank you all for your time!


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